SOLAR ECLIPSES IN HISTORY
by Ken Poshedly
In human history, many events of celestial origin were regarded
with suspicion at best and utter fear for life at worst. It was not
until Europe's "Age of Enlightenment" when the masses slowly began to
realize that eclipses and similar occurrences were spectacular natural
phenomenon and not angry messages from the gods. Some societies, how-
ever, still react with trepidation when the Sun is temporarily blocked
out by the passing Moon, or Earth covers the Moon's view of the Sun
and turns our satellite into a blood red orb.
With this in mind, read on to learn how our ancestors both ancient
and recent handled these things. The following information is cour-
tesy of Cunard Lines and its June 22 to July 8, 1973 African Eclipse
Cruise brochure.
2137 B.C. - The earliest written record of a total solar eclipse
comes from China. Two royal astronomers, Hi and Ho, were too drunk
to perform the eclipse rites of chanting, beating drums, and shooting
arrows at the "dragon" that was devouring the Sun. The emperor ordered
them beheaded for their 'sins'. Other reports state that these men
also failed to predict the eclipse and left the people unprepared to
ward off the dragon.
1900 B.C. - In southern England stands Stonehenge, an awesome
arrangement of stones that has been the subject of countless studies,
poems, and legends. Evidence indicates that Stonehenge was a brilli-
antly conceived astronomical observatory. Certain holes in the stones
and their arrangement were apparently used as an eclipse predictor.
May 28, 585 B.C. - The most famous solar eclipse of classical
times occurred in the midst of a battle between the Medes and the
Lydians. Both sides regarded it as an omen and immediately ceased
their hostilities, thereby ending a six-year war.
May 5, 840 A.D. - Louis of Bavaria, son of Charlemagne (742-814)
and head of a vast European empire, supposedly died of fright during
this eclipse. His three sons immediately fought over succession,
resulting in the division of the empire into what is today France,
Germany, and Italy.
August 21, 1560 - The announcement of this forthcoming eclipse in
France caused many Frenchmen to panic, fighting one another to be next
in line at the confessional. One beleaguered parish priest tried to
calm the populace by announcing that since there were so many waiting
to confess, a decision had been made to postpone the eclipse for two
weeks!
October 27, 1780 - During the American Revolutionary War, the
first American solar eclipse expedition was organized and sent out
from Harvard College in Massachusetts. A special immunity agreement
was negotiated with the British to allow the scientists to work
unharmed. The Harvard expedition, after all their efforts, missed
the eclipse because they chose a site outside the path of totality!
July 28, 1851 - The first successful photograph was taken of
the Sun's corona during totality.
August 18, 1878 - Though now said to be untrue, this ranks as one
of the world's great chicken stories: American inventor Thomas Alva
Edison (1847-1931) set up his instruments in a Wyoming chicken coop
to view this total solar eclipse. But when the Sun became dim, the
chickens thought night was upon them and came inside to roost. Edison
spent so much time fighting the chickens that he had only a few seconds
of the more than three minutes totality to actually observe anything.
April 29, 1919 - This eclipse was used to dramatically confirm
Albert Einstein's (1879-1955) Theory of Relativity; the experiment
proved that the speed of light (300,000 kilometers/186,000 miles per
second) is slowed by powerful gravity - in this case, the Sun.
January 24, 1925 - Those above 96th Street in Manhattan saw a
total solar eclipse while those below 96th Street saw a partial
eclipse - all in all, another typical day in New York City.
May 9, 1948 - National elections scheduled for this month in Korea
were postponed because this total eclipse was to occur on the date
originally set for balloting.
April 20, 1966 - On this date, Hindu pilgrims by the thousands
plunged themselves into sacred bathing tanks in northern India, hoping
for protection from demons they believed were causing the Sun to go
dark. In this same year, GEMINI 12 astronauts James Lovell and Edwin
Aldrin took the first photograph of a solar eclipse from outside
Earth's atmosphere.
July 10, 1972 - The "world's first floating public eclipse
expedition" set sail from New York with 834 passengers to achieve a
spectacular rendezvous with totality 1,440 kilometers (900 miles) at
sea.
Related EJASA articles -
"Total Solar Eclipses for the Nineteen Nineties", by Philip
Taylor - January 1990
"Explaining Solar and Lunar Eclipses", by Brent Studer - January 1990
About the Author -
Ken Poshedly, ASA Secretary, is a long-time amateur astronomer
and maintains an ongoing interest in astronomical writing and
historical astronomy. Ken's interests also include education and
Volkswagens. A technical writer by profession, Ken has a degree in
Journalism from Kent State University in Ohio. Ken assists with
editing and electronic management of the hardcopy ASA Journal's
computerized assembly.
Ken is the author of the following EJASA articles:
"Did Kepler Fake the Evidence?" - May 1990
"When the Light Gets in Your Eyes, You Shouldn't Have to
Drive to the Country" - February 1991 (with James Smith)
SOCIETY NOTICE -
Solar filters for eclipse viewing (mylar mounted on cardboard)
are available from the Astronomical Society of the Atlantic (ASA),
Post Office Box 95036, Atlanta, Georgia 30347. Please enclose one
dollar ($1.00) and a self-addressed, stamped envelope. The ASA
cautions everyone to use extreme care when observing the Sun, to
avoid eye damage.
THE ELECTRONIC JOURNAL OF THE ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE ATLANTIC
July 1991 - Vol. 2, No. 12
Copyright (c) 1991 - ASA